There are roughly 11,000 students enrolled for classes at SMU.

I refuse to believe that all of those students are ever on campus at one time. I also refuse to believe that all of those students drive a vehicle.

About 2,000 students live on campus in residence halls. If you say a handful more live within walking distance of SMU, you would still have about 10,000 commuters who drive to school.

It is inconceivable that half of the commuters are ever on campus at the same time.
SMU doesn’t have that big of a campus, but it certainly is big enough to hold the 32,000 people that were at the Texas Tech game Aug. 30.

So, for the love of Oprah, how is finding a parking space so difficult on a regular school day?

It may be, in large part, because students living on campus are parking or are forced to park in parking garages.

First of all, it is completely unnecessary for every residential student to have a car on campus. It is uncalled for, that their unnecessary motor vehicles be parked in parking garages all week long.

When I created my class schedule this semester, I relished having my first class at noon on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. What is the point of having my first class at noon, if I still have to get to campus by 9 a.m. to find parking?

It wasn’t always thus, remember? Once you could show up in the afternoon and find plenty of empty spaces.

My first two years at SMU, Airline Parking Garage was like a hidden treasure. Wider parking spaces, closer to main campus, close enough to Hughes-Trigg and Umphrey Lee. It was everything I could have ever dreamed of.

Not this semester. At least, not since everyone relocated their vehicles for last Friday’s football game. Now, Airline is but a shadow of what it used to be. There are no choice parking spaces to find, only cramped compact spots next to dust-covered clunkers.

Every night I pray to Tom Cruise and baby Jesus, that when I drive to campus the next day, Airline will be empty again.

Every day, I drive to Airline, and you know what I have found? Tom Cruise sucks.

Teniente is a junior majoring in journalism.